In order for wireless devices to gain full access to an IEEE 802.11-compliant wireless communication network, they must first become both authenticated and associated with the network. Authentication requires a wireless device to establish its identity, whereas network association corresponds to a registration of the wireless device with the network access point so that data can be properly delivered. Additionally, in order to establish a more secure network access, wireless devices sometimes undergo further authentication via the Robust Security Network Association (RSNA) algorithm.
However, current authentication and association procedures, particularly for Directional Multigigabit (DMG) and Enhanced Directional Multigigabit devices, are potentially time consuming. Multiple handshake messages, proceeding one at a time in strict sequence, can contribute to significant delay, which can be detrimental to some applications. For example, the document IEEE 802.11-2015/0625r1, entitled “IEEE 802.11 TGay Use Cases,” May 2015, and available at https://mentor.ieee.org, proposes several use cases for future IEEE 802.11 network applications, some of which require wireless devices to access the network with very little delay. One such use case corresponds to Ultra Short Range (USR) communications, in which users wirelessly download mass data in less than 1 second at a distance of less than 10 cm. The link setup time is required to be less than 100 ms in this use case. As such, the current approach to association and authentication in IEEE 802.11 networks, and in particular for DMG and Enhanced DMG devices, can be inadequate for some current and future use cases.
Various IEEE 802.11 management frames include a section that contains one or a plurality of concatenated information elements. Selected types of information elements can be embedded within a given management frame. Existing types of information elements include those usable for communicating Service Set Identifier (SSID), supported data rates, parameter sets for configuring communication such as a frequency hopping parameter set, a direct sequence parameter set, a contention-free parameter set, a traffic indication map, an independent basis service set parameter set, and a challenge text, as well as vendor-specific information elements. The IEEE 802.11 standard is expandable to include further types of as-yet unspecified information elements.
Therefore, there is a need for a method and apparatus for authentication of wireless devices that mitigates one or more limitations of the prior art, such as time limitations due to latency of authentication procedures.
This background information is provided to reveal information believed by the applicant to be of possible relevance to the present invention. No admission is necessarily intended, nor should be construed, that any of the preceding information constitutes prior art against the present invention.